Technique for removal of organics and dissolved solids from aqueous medias via supercritical treatment

Abstract

Flow and product waste water from fracturing can be cleaned and reused utilizing a precipitation methodology incorporating, in part, a super critical reactor 30. Initially, the waste water is treated to remove solids, destroy bacteria, and precipitate out certain salts, such as barium, strontium, calcium, magnesium and iron. The waste water then can be passed through a radioactive material adsorption unit 20 to remove radium, as well as other radioactive materials, and then introduced into the super critical reactor 30. The super critical reactor is designed to bring the waste water to super critical conditions at a central portion of the reactor. This causes any dissolve solids, in particular sodium chloride and the like, to precipitate out of solution in the center 42 of the reactor 30 thereby avoiding scale formation on the walls of the reactor. A catalyst can be utilized to promote the breakdown of carbon bonds and promote the water / gas shift reaction. The effluent from the super critical reactor is then cooled and any formed gases separated from the remaining liquid. The remaining liquid can then be introduced back into the environment and the gases can be used to heat the super critical reactor.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application is a submission under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of International Application No. PCT / US2013 / 022842, filed Jan. 24, 2013, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61 / 591,436, filed Jan. 27, 2012, the disclosures of which are hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Management of flowback and produced (F / P) water from conventional and unconventional oil and gas wells has been deemed by the US Department of Energy as the largest volume waste stream associated with oil and gas production. With increased oil and gas production from unconventional resources F / P water management is a growing concern worldwide. In 2007, oil and gas fields produced over 80 billion barrels of water requiring processing. Global cost estimates stemming from F / P water management are more than $40 billion annually, with water transportation costs accounting for an addition...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present invention is about treating water from hydraulically fractured wells for reuse. It involves using a combination of chemical and mechanical separation techniques to remove impurities from the water. The water is first treated using a hydrocyclone particulate filter, an ultra-violet (UV) treatment unit, a sulfonation unit, a softening unit, a hydrolysis unit to remove targeted dissolved solids, and a radioactive material adsorption unit. Then, the water is introduced into a super critical reactor that heats the water to super critical temperature causing the remaining dissolved solids to precipitate. The purified water exits through the top of the unit. The invention also allows for the decomposition of hydrocarbons present in the fluid and the formation of hydrogen and carbon dioxide, which can be used to power the super critical reactor. Overall, the invention provides a way to recycle and purify water from hydraulically fractured wells for further use.

Problems solved by technology

This, in turn, causes the remaining dissolved solids to precipitate.

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